Parman Tractor & Equipment hit a milestone earlier this fall when it sold its 1,000th Takeuchi-brand machine.

The Nashville-based distributor began marketing, selling and renting the Japanese manufacturer's line of equipment in the spring 2019, just after Parman first opened its doors.

The maker of track loaders, excavators, wheel loader, crawler dumpers and attachments, Takeuchi's products for the U.S. market are produced near Atlanta, the headquarters for Takeuchi U.S.

Its machines had been marketed in the Middle Tennessee region by Cumberland Tractor & Equipment and Nashville Ford Tractor, which was purchased by Parman Holdings Corp. in April 2019. Following the deal's conclusion, the dealership assumed the Parman name.

With the 2024 addition of a second store in Columbia, Tenn., approximately an hour south of Nashville, the equipment distributor was able to broaden its customer reach to a new area of the state.

"Parman was a fuel lubricants company originally and when it acquired Cumberland, it entered into a whole new industry with construction equipment," said Courtney Piercy, Parman's rental manager of the Nashville location. "In doing so, they took on a team that, at the time, had more than 20 years of experience in sales and finance. I started with the company in June 2019 and grew with Parman."

She added that Colin Hockenberger, now COO of Parman Tractor & Equipment, and Charley Crichton, the company's president, "worked specifically with the existing team to learn everything they could about the construction industry. For instance, they saw to it that we became more involved with the Nashville construction scene through trade groups like the Tennessee Utilities and Construction Association (TUCA) and working with different municipalities."

Due to Parman lacking experience in the construction industry, Piercy said it benefited the company tremendously that Cumberland already marketed Takeuchi and Link-Belt, which gave the company a head start on accumulating more top OEMs.

Hockenberger added that Parman inherited a market share of Takeuchi and other products on its first day that was "in the single digits — low- to mid-single digits — and now we're above 10 percent consistently, which is really good in a hot market like Middle Tennessee."

The dealership's best-selling Takeuchi machines are its compact track loaders and mini-excavators, with the loaders being at the top of the list. In fact, Piercy said Parman's largest market demand in the region is for those Takeuchi workhorses.

"We sell a lot of track loaders that move not only dirt but serve as tool carriers that handle 20 different jobs on a work site," Hockenberger said.

The dependability and versatility of Takeuchi's products have endeared them to Parman customers, many of whom first used the machines after having rented the machines through Piercy's department. That, combined with Parman opening its Columbia branch, brought more customers to the OEM's brand and contributed mightily to the sale of the dealership's 1,000th Takeuchi.

"Having that second location in Columbia has just expanded what we can get to the customer as far as rental, sales, parts and service," Piercy said. "Without it over this past year, we would not have sold our 1,000th machine."

Hockenberger agreed and said, "That store has been a key to our success in an area where we're exceeding market share expectations."

When asked which Takeuchi model reached the magic sales milestone, he was not certain, but speculated, "Most likely a Takeuchi track loader — a model TL8 or TL12; those are our most popular machines."

Other factors also played a role in Parman being able to achieve the sales mark.

Not to be forgotten in helping to sell the 1,000th Takeuchi, according to Hockenberger and Piercy, was the salesmanship of Parman's veteran associates.

"We have a tenured sales team — the best one in the Middle Tennessee area," Hockenberger said. "I don't think anybody thought we'd sell 1,000 machines when we originally purchased the business but through our motto, ‘Totally Outrageous Customer Service,' and thanks to our salespeople and customers, we simply could not have done it."

Parman also employs two sales associates, Dennis Stanley Jr. and Joe Williams, who were recognized this year with Takeuchi 360° awards. In addition, Scott Syler, who received the Takeuchi 360° Dealer Salesperson of the Year for 2024, helped Parman sell a large number of the machines, as did new sales reps that the dealership added to its team over the last several years, according to Piercy.

Syler, she said, was an agricultural equipment sales representative who started in the 1990s before joining Parman when it was a tractor supplier. Since then, he has amassed a large customer base for the company throughout Middle Tennessee and beyond as some of his customers still rely on him even as they have moved to other areas of the state.

"If people know Parman, they know Scott Syler for sure," Piercy said.

"The customers that we've had, some of whom have come here for 30 years, and all the new business and growth in this part of Tennessee, has been very important to Parman," she added. "We always want to focus on them because without our customers, obviously, we would not be as successful as we have been."

On the sales floor, Hockenberger was questioned about the model year 2026 Takeuchi track loaders that will soon be in his showrooms. He singled out the TL11 as being the "newest and most exciting one."

"It has electric over-hydraulic controls and new creature features," he said. "Additionally, it has greater operational versatility with better tools and GPS."

Among the new Takeuchi compact excavators on the horizon, Hockenberger said, is the model TB350, which he described as "a minimal tail swing, 11,000-pound machine, so it's been really good for residential and commercial building, landscaping and construction projects. It also works well in tight spaces."

Parman is proud of the excellent reputation it has established in all areas of its business and the fact that so many people in Middle Tennessee choose the company over its competitors.

Piercy has an idea why that is true.

"With our motto, ‘Totally Outrageous Customer Service,' we try to focus on not just one department, but the company as a whole," she said. "That means whenever you purchase a machine from us, we're also trying to provide the rental for any other piece of equipment that you may need on the job site, as well as the service for the machine you purchase, and on the parts."

As part of Parman's complete service after the sale, Hockenberger said it is able "to offer a good-sized mobile repair fleet of trucks and with two locations, we cover a broad area that includes all of Middle Tennessee and the surrounding region in either our shops or on the roadside."

When many of the start-up contractors in the region come to Parman needing equipment built to handle small projects, Piercy said the dealership has proven adept at continuing to retain their business as they grow and prosper. By doing so over the years, the equipment distributor has established a relationship that benefits both parties.

"There are several customers that I can recall off the top of my head that came to us for mini-excavators and track loaders through our rentals department whenever they first started their businesses and were just tackling small jobs. We assisted them in starting their one- or two-day projects and then as they grew, a few of them moved into needing larger equipment, such as Link-Belt's 130, 145 and 350 model excavators."

Besides the Takeuchi and Link-Belt products it offers new and long-time customers, Piercy said that Parman also has Sakai soil compact rollers with smooth or padfoot drums and a shell kit attachment. The company prefers to primarily rent dirt-moving equipment, while in the sales fleet, it offers mulching heads and stump grinders.

She also said that Parman rents Gorman-Rupp pumps for bypass jobs from its Nashville location, and at the Columbia branch, the Takeuchi lines available for rent, along with a few Link-Belts and Massey-Ferguson tractors.

"We try to appeal to customers in every field we can," Piercy said. "As Rachel Hockenberger, our [Parman Holding Corp. CEO] always says, she wants Parman Tractor & Equipment to be a part of the success story of other businesses as well, so that's something that we really strive to achieve through each department. We want to help customers to grow from a startup to a large and successful company." CEG